Ever since the craft beer revival inspired more fervent converts than anything ever held in a tent, New York has been barreling toward a robust local beer scene. Governor Cuomo greased the suds with the Farm Brewery Law in 2013, and farmers and brewers are reaping the benefits in the form of barley, wheat and hops.
Indian Ladder Farms and C.H. Evans Brewing Company have collaborated on ILF IPA, which they claim is the state’s first exclusively local beer. The Heritage Helderberg Hops were found growing wild near Albany, and even the malting facility is in New York. They’ll be tapping the first keg this Thursday at Albany Pump Station.
Can’t make it upstate this week? You’ll be able to sample beers made from Indian Ladder Farms hops and barley soon at Other Half Brewing. Dietrich Gehring, the force behind soon-to-be-licensed Indian Ladder Farmstead Brewery and Cidery, promised Edible that they’ll be selling bottles in the city the day they receive permission. Their first project? Hopped Up, a genre-defying drink made with 80 percent apples, 20 percent pears, and, of course, hops.
